UAE: Etihad To Donate To Charity 150,000 Meals Per Year

Etihad Aviation Group has launched a community programme that will deliver 400 meals per day to charity.

The initiative will be held throughout 2018 and beyond, with approximately 150,000 meals to be donated every year.

As part of its sustainability and corporate social responsibility efforts, the Abu Dhabi-based airline has teamed up with the Grace Conservation Programme of Emirates Red Cross and Red Crescent Society and Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority to donate inflight meals to labourer residences in the Mussaffah area of Abu Dhabi.

The meals are initially prepared for the airline’s three on board cabins – First Class, Business Class and Economy Class – and are then transported in a purpose-designed truck to keep them fresh.

Emirates Red Cross and Red Crescent Society will provide an equipped kitchen and trucks to collect and store meals for distribution.

Khaled AlMehairbi, Senior Vice President and General Manager Etihad Airport Services Ground – Abu Dhabi Hub and CSR Strategy, said, We are strongly committed to the local community and proudly support various charities worldwide.

Etihad is always looking at new ways to extend the reach of our charitable and humanitarian efforts.

This drive is guided by the values and legacy of our late founding father Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.

He inspires and motivates us to share and give back to the communities we are living and operating in.

Sultan Al Shehi, General Manager, Grace Conservation Programme of Emirates Red Cross and Red Crescent Society, said, We are excited to launch this initiative in collaboration with Etihad Aviation Group and Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority.

This partnership reflects Abu Dhabi’s spirit of sharing and giving.

We have worked together with Etihad Aviation Group to support many charitable and humanitarian activities.

However, this partnership is especially important for its size and scale.


Tourism Observer

UAE: Etihad Aviation Group Tony Douglas As Group Chief Executive Officer

Tony Douglas
The Chairman of Etihad Aviation Group, His Excellency Mohamed Mubarak Fadhel Al Mazrouei, today confirmed the appointment of Tony Douglas as Group Chief Executive Officer, who will join the company in January 2018.

Mr. Douglas joins Etihad from the United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defence, where he has served as CEO of the Defence Equipment and Support department, responsible for procuring and supporting all the equipment and services for the British Armed Forces.

In the UK, he held senior positions with airport operator BAA, and as Chief Operating Officer and Group Chief Executive designate of Laing O’Rourke.

His roles under airport operator BAA included Managing Director of the Heathrow Terminal 5 project, Group Supply Chain Director, Group Technical Director, and CEO of Heathrow Airport.

Previously, Mr. Douglas held senior positions in the UAE, most notably as CEO of Abu Dhabi Airports Company and as CEO of Abu Dhabi Ports Company where he was responsible for the successful delivery of Khalifa Port.

Mr. Douglas will be supported by an experienced group leadership team which includes Ray Gammell, who will return to his position as Group Chief People & Performance Officer; Ricky Thirion, Interim Group Chief Financial Officer; Kevin Knight, Group Chief Strategy & Planning Officer; Mana Mohamed Saeed Al Mulla, Chief Group Support Services Officer; Henning zur Hausen, General Counsel; and Amina Taher, Vice President Corporate Affairs.

The divisional CEOs will report directly to Mr. Douglas, including Peter Baumgartner, CEO of Etihad Airways; Chris Youlten, Managing Director of Etihad Airport Services; Abdul Khaliq Saeed, CEO of Etihad Airways Engineering; Gavin Halliday, Managing Director of Hala Group; and Robin Kamark who joins as CEO, Airline Equity Partners in October 2017.



Tourism Observer

Etihad And Lufthansa Pen Codeshare Agreement

Etihad Airways, the national carrier of the United Arab Emirates and Lufthansa German Airlines, part of Europe’s largest airline group, today announced the conclusion of an extensive codeshare agreement. The arrangement is set to start in January 2017, subject to government approval.

A major wet-lease agreement between Lufthansa Group and airberlin – in which Etihad Aviation Group indirectly holds a 29 per cent stake – was also announced today. Lufthansa’s point-to-point carrier Eurowings and Austrian Airlines, a Lufthansa Group airline, have signed an agreement to wet lease 38 aircraft from air berlin. 33 of these aircraft are to be operated for the Eurowings Group, an additional five aircraft are to be flown for Austrian Airlines. The agreement has a term validity of six years and becomes effective from February 2017, again subject to any regulatory approvals.

Under the codeshare agreement, the German airline will place its ‘LH’ code on Etihad Airways’ twice daily non-stop flights between its home base of Abu Dhabi and Frankfurt and its twice daily nonstop services between Abu Dhabi and Munich, the largest city in southern Germany.

The UAE’s national airline will, in turn, put its ‘EY’ code on Lufthansa’s long-haul, non-stop intercontinental services between its home base of Frankfurt, the business and commercial capital of Germany and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil as well as Bogota, Colombia.

James Hogan, President and Chief Executive Officer, Etihad Aviation Group, said: 'We have long seen Germany as a key strategic market for Etihad Aviation Group and this new relationship with Lufthansa marks the next step in our commitment to the leading European aviation group. Lufthansa is highly respected globally and I’m very pleased that we will work together in the future for the benefit of our customers. Additionally, we are, in our role as a minority shareholder in airberlin, fully supportive of the separate agreement reached today with the Lufthansa Group to wet lease 38 airberlin aircraft. It is very clear to us at Etihad Airways that Lufthansa is a like-minded, forward thinking organisation with which we can do strong, meaningful and mutually beneficial business'.

Carsten Spohr, Chairman of the Board and CEO, Lufthansa Group, in his response then said: 'We are looking forward to partnering with the Etihad Aviation Group. The wet-lease contract with airberlin fosters the growth of our Eurowings Group. The codeshare agreement of Lufthansa and Etihad will offer our customers more benefits and complement both airlines’ networks. We will consider extending our cooperation in other areas'.

Etihad serves Entebbe, Nairobi and Dar es Salaam in Eastern Africa and passengers from these destinations can now reach such distant places like Rio de Janeiro and Bogota on one ticket when the new deal takes effect.

Etihad And Jet Airways Increase Abu Dhabi-India Route

Etihad Airways and Indian equity partner Jet Airways plans to boost its network between Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and India, subject to government approval. The two carriers want to add 28 flights a week—including three new destinations—that will increase the network to 18 cities.

Both carriers said the additional frequencies will strengthen their partnership in one of the world’s fastest-growing aviation markets.

Etihad Airways currently operates 175 weekly flights between Abu Dhabi and 11 Indian cities. Together, Etihad Airways and Jet Airways offer 252 weekly flights between Abu Dhabi and 15 cities across India. With the newly announced flights, the cooperative services will cover 18 Indian cities with 280 flights each week.

Etihad plans to launch a fourth daily Abu Dhabi-Kozhikode flight on March 26, 2017. Daily Abu Dhabi-Ahmedabad services will become 2X-daily, starting Feb. 1.

Jet Airways plans to launch daily Tiruchirappalli (Trichy)-Abu Dhabi flights from Feb. 1, 2017. Daily Kannur-Abu Dhabi and Chandigarh-Abu Dhabi services will begin in the second half of 2017, subject to the completion of operational readiness at these airports.

Starting Jan. 15, 2017, Jet Airways will introduce a second daily service between New Delhi and Abu Dhabi. Etihad already operates three flights a day between the two capitals.

In 2015, Etihad and Jet Airways together carried 3.3 million passengers between Abu Dhabi and India—a 63% increase over the 2 million passengers flown in 2014. The combined operation enjoys the biggest share of passenger traffic to and from India, one of the world’s biggest economies.

Etihad Aviation Group president and CEO James Hogan said in a statement: “Our partnership with Jet Airways has gone from strength to strength. Sharing resources and reaching decisions together are key to our success. Jet Airways is Etihad Airways’ leading equity partner in terms of revenue and passenger contribution.”

Etihad contributed 717,966 passengers to Jet Airways’ flights for the 12 months to August 2016, a 57% increase on the same period last year. Conversely, Jet Airways contributed 396,288 guests to Etihad's flights over the same period, a 33% increase on the corresponding period last year.